All men were created equal, and we should all be celebrated on a day like International Men’s Day, but there are a still a few of our favourites that we should salute as being the standard-bearers for all mankind.

Whatever their field and their chosen path in life, they are a great bunch of lads, and we should recognise them as the men of the moment on this important day in our calendars. Here are just a few of the names that made a splash since the last International Men's Day. 

Michael Sam

The first openly gay athlete in the NFL, Michael Sam spent 2014 becoming a huge trailblazer for professional sports, setting an example that can hopefully be followed in top level leagues around the world.

Benedict Cumberbatch

A man who has taken the year by the scruff of the neck, we are close to approaching peak-Cumberbatch, given how he’s been pretty much everywhere recently. Still, we’re not there yet, and so for now we’ll enjoy him and his Smaug-tacular vocal talents.

Matthew McConnaughey

Between Dallas Buyers Club and Interstellar, the McConnaissance has taken the world by storm, with Matt proving that he can do giant epic blockbusters as well as affecting dramas, and he is probably the biggest actor on the planet right now. No more leaning sideways on movie posters for him.

Roy Keane

Pundit turned assistant manager for Ireland turned Aston Villa assistant-manager turned author, Roy Keane has had a busy year and really hasn't been far from the headlines at any point. He was even offering his opinions on movies, which went down a storm. That's another little nixer for him if he can get a spare few minutes. Plus he grew that beard.

Brian O'Driscoll

One of the greatest to ever play the game, Brian hung up his boots this year with a victory in the Six Nations and a trophy with Leinster too, ensuring that a career filled with amazing moments that brought joy to every Irish fan ended on the right note. He also wrote a book, but it turned out to not be as controversial as Roy's surprisingly, and contained less than adequate amounts of detail as to what he was thinking about with some of his poorer haircuts.

Chris Pratt

With Guardians of the Galaxy, he not only became a huge superstar, but he got in incredible shape too, proving that the average guy can do it, but it might not be all that pleasant. He also now dresses a whole lot better than he used to as well.

Chris Hemsworth

He was just named the sexiest man alive, so it would be hard to exclude Thor himself from the list, lest he lay down some justice upon us with his hammer. Shout out to his brother Luke though, who, while he is a good looking lad, might struggle to compete with his brothers Chris and Liam. Unlucky.

Colin Farrell

Colin looks to be on the verge of a career revival after a few years off radar. He looks set to star in the next series of True Detective, and his fantastic plea for marriage equality recently that gave an insight in to his own personal experiences with the issue that were genuinely touching. He’s a good lad that Colin.

Hozier

It’s been a big year for the man from Wicklow, who will be capping it off with an appearance at the Victoria’s Secret show alongside huge stars like Taylor Swift and Ed Sheeran. No one has taken him to that church yet though, so hopefully he gets there before the year is out.